New York is out of money. That is a fact, not an opinion. Facing a $9 bil lion budget deficit in the coming year and even larger gaps in following years, there is no relief in sight. We can’t tax ourselves out of this mess, and the federal government isn’t about to bail us out either. Therefore, it is up to us New Yorkers to save our state.

Fortunately, we in New York have in our recent past learned some valuable lessons in regards to fiscal crises.

First, effective leadership is the single most important factor in overcoming seemingly impossible challenges. Back in the days of the New York City fiscal crisis, Gov. Hugh Carey led the effort to rescue the city. He understood then, and left us a model that we can use now, that it takes a team effort, and everyone needs to be enlisted to reach the goal. It is my belief and great hope that Gov.-elect Andrew Cuomo will use the lessons from that crisis to help us confront our problems today.

Finding leaders willing to put aside narrow partisan, political thinking is the first step. Next we must mobilize voices of support for the tough measures that need to be enacted and help those who are willing to face these issues directly.

In the 1970s, when I joined Gov. Carey’s team, we assembled the broadest coalition of supporters: bankers, business leaders, labor leaders and politicians from all parties. It may seem quaint now, but we worked together to put New York first and left aside the usual game of politics, name-calling and finger-pointing.

Today, I’m pleased to say that I am joining a similar team — the Committee to Save New York.

This group — representing all regions of the Empire State, all communities, business and labor — will support our new governor and his allies as they try to balance the budget, stop the job drain and make the institutional changes to state government that will bring our costs into line with our revenue. We need to do all these things and more.

CSNY will be a resource to New Yorkers as we provide critical information to educate the public and our elected officials about the problems facing us all. It will use its resources to counteract any misinformation that is spread during the budget debate and will plainly show the consequences of failing to act.

This committee — comprised of civic leaders including Richard Parsons, Carl McCall, Rob Speyer and Gary LaBarbera — will reach out to enlist the broadest possible support for the governor and the legislators seeking to tackle our problems. Together, we will make sure that those who are fighting for New York’s future know they’re not alone.

The decisions won’t be easy ones, but when there are no viable alternatives, the most important decision is to begin.

The bottom line is that New York’s expenditures are far outpacing our economy, and we will need to cut spending.

The governor will face many obstacles, legislators will feel immense pressure to cave in to the demands of special interests and the public will be deluged with hypercritical political rhetoric. The Committee to Save New York will focus on the real problems facing our state and the courage it will take to address those facts directly and fulfill a vision beyond politics.

The governor-elect ran on a sound economic platform: capping property taxes, reducing wasteful spending and streamlining government bureaucracy. We have spent beyond our means for far too long, and it is time to pay the bill. If we don’t deal with this crisis, we may very well lose the ability to determine our own destiny.

We got to this place because most New Yorkers weren’t paying attention or didn’t think it was their business to take on Albany and the special interests. That has to change this year. I am convinced that once New Yorkers understand the stakes, we can and will rise to any challenge.

Gov.-elect Cuomo and many of the legislators who were elected in November have promised to provide bold leadership and to make the tough decisions necessary to turn our state around. I and my colleagues in business and from labor, from Long Island to the Niagara Frontier, are ready to help.

Felix G. Rohatyn, former chairman of the Municipal Assistance Corp., helped restructure New York City’s debt during the 1970s fiscal crisis.